Philly renters could benefit from inspections, protections from landlords under new proposal | City Council roundup
Council also approved nominees for the Citizens Police Oversight Commission and called on the NFL to forego banning the Tush Push.
Renters in Philadelphia may be getting more protections if Philadelphia lawmakers pass a package of bills introduced Thursday in City Council.
The Safe Healthy Homes Act, a package of bills introduced by Philadelphia City Councilmember Nicolas O’Rourke at Council’s weekly session, proposes — among other things — establishing a proactive property inspections program, expanding tenants’ protections against retaliation and harassment, reforming requirements for ending a tenancy, and creating an “anti-displacement fund.”
The legislation is an endorsement of the Safe Healthy Homes platform spearheaded by OnePA Renters United Philadelphia and Philly Thrive. Members of these organizations held a rally — complete with matching yellow shirts — outside Council chambers before Thursday morning’s session and cheered when O’Rourke, a member of the progressive Working Families Party, introduced the package.
Also on Thursday, Council weighed in on the NFL Tush Push debate and welcomed the president of FIFA ahead of the World Cup matches taking place in Philadelphia next year.
What was this week’s highlight?
‘Dignity’: O’Rourke said that there are existing protections for renters in the Philadelphia Code, but that his bills will add some “real teeth and some real muscle.”
During a speech in Council chambers Thursday, O’Rourke said it comes down to “dignity.”
“Because every person deserves to live in a safe home and every person deserves to move to the city without fear or without hardship,” he said.
The legislation runs alongside the Safe Healthy Homes budget from OnePA Renters United Philadelphia and Philly Thrive, housing justice and environmental justice organizations, respectively. The groups propose, among other things, allocating $10 million for Philadelphia Energy Authority’s Built to Last program, which provides home repairs to low-income homeowners. The platform also calls for $10 million for the Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections to launch a pilot program for proactive inspections on rental code enforcement.
Other Council bills this year have been aimed at helping the city’s renters. In January, Councilmember Rue Landau put forth a pair of bills that would cap apartment application fees at $20 and would allow renters to pay security deposits in four installments.
Greg Wertman, president of HAPCO Philadelphia, the city’s largest landlord association, who had previously indicated opposition to Landau’s security deposit installment bill, said O’Rourke’s legislation was redundant and “insulting.”
Wertman said that he is not necessarily opposed to the inspections as outlined in O’Rourke’s bill but that he believes there are greater priorities for L&I. On the retaliation protection bill, he said: “Where is the [legislation for] retaliation against landlords when tenants go after landlords?”
He added that there is a “hatred in City Hall towards landlords” and said some of the city’s policies are driving out small landlords.
“When was the last time anyone in City Council passed legislation that was helpful to landlords?” Wertman said.
After O’Rourke introduced his package of bills during the busy Council session, Council President Kenyatta Johnson praised his efforts with: “Good job.”
What else happened this week?
Oversight overhaul: Council approved the appointments of six members of the Citizens Police Oversight Commission.
The new members confirmed Thursday to fill vacancies on the nine-person board are Malika Rahman, Gilberto Gonzalez, Michelle Enix-Kenney, LaTanya Whitehead, and Erika Stewart. Council also approved the reappointment of Haakim Peay. All were approved in unanimous voice votes.
» READ MORE: Despite reforms, 85% of fired Philly cops are reinstated through arbitration
After the murder of George Floyd in 2020, Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr. championed the creation of CPOC, which is meant “to review and improve police officer conduct,” among other tasks, and “to help hold the Police Department accountable for officers’ actions,” according to city law. It replaced the Police Advisory Commission, which was seen as lacking the resources and authority needed to provide real accountability.
But since it launched, CPOC has run into some of the same issues — with the police union still able to effectively block its investigations — and it has been riddled by internal discord. Advocates for police accountability have called on Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s administration to make changing that provision of the union contract a priority in forthcoming negotiations with the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5.
Who was there?
Face of FIFA: Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, the world governing body for soccer, spoke to Council to promote the 2026 World Cup, which will be played at locations across North America, including Philadelphia.
Having the World Cup in Philadelphia is “a symbol itself,” Infantino said.
“Here the American dream started, and here we’ll start with the new FIFA World Cup,” he said.
Philadelphia will host eight World Cup matches at Lincoln Financial Field in June and July 2026.
The World Cup is one of several major events taking place in the city next summer. The city will also host the MLB All-Star Game and will be a major hub for the celebration of the United States’ Semiquincentennial, the nation’s 250th birthday.
Quotable
Pushing back: Councilmember Jeffery “Jay” Young Jr. introduced a resolution “calling on the National Football League to abandon proposed rule changes to halt the usage of the Philadelphia Eagles’ signature quarterback sneak, better known as the ‘Brotherly Shove’ or the ‘Tush Push.’ ”
The play — a quarterback sneak in which other offensive backs push the quarterback from behind — has become a symbol of the Super Bowl LIX-winning Eagles’ smashmouth brand of football. But the Birds’ competitors apparently don’t love being on the other end of it.
» READ MORE: The Eagles’ Tush Push is probably going to be banned. Here’s the real reason why.
At the urging of teams including the Green Bay Packers, which lost to the Eagles in the playoffs last year, the league considered banning the Tush Push this offseason. The proposal to ban the push was tabled, but some expect it will be approved next year.
Young made sure not to let the Packers off the hook for leading the Tush Push pushback.
“WHEREAS, Rather than figure out ways to stop the Eagles from running the play with such predictable success, teams such as the Green Bay Packers have made multiple attempts to ban the play before the NFL’s Competition Committee,” the resolution reads in part.
Staff writers Jake Blumgart and Anna Orso contributed to this article.